Ambassador William (Bill) Brownfield has been affiliated with CSIS as a senior adviser since 2018. Prior to that, Bill Brownfield enjoyed an illustrious career in public service, at the rank of career ambassador, the highest rank in the U.S. Foreign Service. Amb. Brownfield’s last seven years of his career were spent serving as the assistant secretary of state for the bureau of international narcotics and law enforcement affairs. As assistant secretary, Amb. Brownfield ran a portfolio of more than $4 billion in 80 countries administered by 5000 employees and contractors. Amb. Brownfield’s expertise in the Americas draws from his vast experience in serving as U.S. ambassador to Chile, Venezuela, and Colombia. Through his ambassadorial posts, Amb. Brownfield was immersed in working with the Colombian government to build upon existing institutions and promoting U.S. interests economically via the establishment of the Chile-United States Free Trade Agreement. In Venezuela, he led an embassy in constant crisis with the most adversarial government of any country in the Hemisphere. Brownfield has UN experience in Geneva and Vienna.  He was temporary political adviser to the U.S. Southern Command. He received the Secretary’s Distinguished Service Award and the Presidential Performance Award three times each. He is a graduate of Cornell University and the National War College and attended the University of Texas School of Law. He speaks Spanish and French.

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Promise and Peril: Migration Management Technologies in West Africa and Central America

In a series of panels focused on North Africa and the Northern Triangle, experts will discuss the threats posed by the misuse of migration management technology and the critical need for proper safeguards and human rights due diligence.  

Event by Erol Yayboke , ​Marti Flacks , William Brownfield , Badara Ndiaye , Amal El Ouassif , Caterina Rodelli , Ángela Alarcón , and Oscar Chacón — February 22, 2023

The Future of Security in Venezuela

Please join Ryan C. Berg, Director of the CSIS Future of Venezuela Initiative for a virtual webinar discussion on the deterioration of security and defense in Venezuela.

Event by Ryan C. Berg , William Brownfield , Liliana Ayalde , and Ivan Simonovis — December 20, 2021

35 West

Voices of Venezuela: Violence and Insecurity

Moises speaks with Ambassador William Brownfield about the violence, crime, and insecurity that have plagued Venezuela in recent years.

Podcast Episode by Moises Rendon and William Brownfield — July 9, 2020

CSIS 35 West

Can the Rio Treaty Help Venezuela?

Please join the CSIS Future of Venezuela Initiative to discuss the implications of invoking the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, known as the Rio Treaty or TIAR for its initials in Spanish.

Event by Moises Rendon , William Brownfield , Ambassador Gustavo Tarre , and Ambassador Fernando Simas Magalhães — January 21, 2020